June 17, 2015 25 June - Correct spelling of Zilberberg

Turkey - USA Friendly Match, an EPIC Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in two sections against a team from Turkey. The idea for dividing
this Friendly Match into two sections was from the Turkey Organizer, with a split between the
two sections at a rating of 2300. Section A consists of a 15-board TRULY EPIC Friendly Match.
Our first board is being played by the USA's highest rated active player GM Alik Zilberberg. He is paired
against GM Tansel Turgut who is currently the 23rd highest rated active player in the ICCF. Both players
are rated over 2600. The average ratings for the top 6 players from Turkey and the USA are 2518 and 2523 respectively.
Among our top 7 players are 4 GMs, 2 SIMs, and 1 IM. Overall, 9 of the 15 players on the USA team in this
section are titled players! Section B, a 23-board section, is headed by a long-time supporter of the
Friendly Matches, David White on first board. SIM Thomas Biedermann is the USA Team Captain
for both sections of this friendly match. You can find the two different sections of this match at the following URLs,
for Sections A and B respectively:
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=53538 and
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=53539.

Congratulations to all of our big gainers and congratulations with a warm welcome to Chris and Edwin in this quarter's top 50!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

June 12, 2015

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 12

The Friendly Post Issue 12 is now available. You can access it using the link
in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

June 10, 2015

Croatia - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 23-board Friendly Match against a team from Croatia -
probably the first time our two countries have played a match!
Our first board is being played by SIM Kenneth Holroyd who is paired against
SIM Siniša Loinjak. SIM Holroyd is also the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
https://www.iccf.com/event?id=53495 .

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

May 3, 2015

GM Jason Bokar to ICCF-US Director

GM Jason Bokar will take over as ICCF-US Director during the ICCF-US Congress in Cardiff,
Wales August 2015. As NAPZ Director Jason continues as an ICCF Executive Board member.
Jason was ICCF-US Deputy for several years prior to 2007 when he took a job transfer to France,
so was unable to take the ICCF-US Director position at that time. Jason received the Bertl von
Massow Silver medal for ten years of exceptional service to ICCF at the Krakow, Poland Congress in 2013.

Jason is one of the top rated players in ICCF-US, and has represented us in the Olympiad Finals
twice, finished fifth in World Championship 24 concluded in 2012, and is currently playing in a
WCCC Candidates Tournament. Thank you, Jason, for volunteering to take on the duties as ICCF-US Director!
Jason has asked all current ICCF-US Board members to continue their volunteer roles.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Director

May 3, 2015

SIM Tom Biederman, ICCF-US Deputy Director

SIM Tom Biedermann is appointed as ICCF-US Deputy Director, maintaining
all current duties including including Treasurer. For the last three years Tom
has handled finances for ICCF-US, including processing all entries, and has helped
with recruiting players to fill out brackets and selecting recipients for invitations for
ICCF-US and events from other National Federations. Tom will be a major help as
ICCF-US makes the transition to GM Jason Bokar as ICCF-US Director. Tom has
represented us on numerous teams, winning a silver team medal for the 10th Pan Am
team, and helping qualify our team for the next Olympiad Final. He has played many WCCCs,
including Candidates Tournament 30. And he won USCCC 16.

I look forward to continuing on our Board, to handle New Player applications, and help
with invitations for those others on the Board who are reluctant to choose themselves
to play in major events. My thanks to all players for making the last eight years as our
National Federation Rep rewarding, and just lots of fun. Special thanks go to the ICCF-US Board.
Those who have been volunteers for the last eight years are SIM Dan Perry (webmaster),
IM Bob Rizzo (Titles), and SIM Kristo Miettinen (TD and TO). For the last three years ICCF-US has
experienced great growth in number of players, and in success achieving norms and titles.
This was possible because of added volunteers to the Board: SIM Tom Biedermann (Treasurer),
Dennis Doren (TO and TD), IM Tony Kain (hardware and software support), Glen Shields (NAPZ TO
and liaison to CCLA), SIM Carl Siefring (TO and invitational decision maker), and SIM Ken Holroyd
(recently added to help with TO and invitations).

March 17, 2015

Poland - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 40-board Friendly Match against a team from Poland.
Our first board is being played by SIM Kenneth Reinhart who is paired against
GM Rafael Pierzak. IM Wolff Morrow
is the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=52170 .

Congratulations to all of our big gainers and congratulations with a hearty welcome to Matthew and Peter in this quarter's top 50!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

March 10, 2015

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 11

The Friendly Post Issue 11 is now available. You can access it using the link
in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 1, 2015

Ukraine - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 32-board Friendly Match against a team from Ukraine.
Our first board is being played by GM Jon Ostriker who is paired against
GM Alex Nikolaevich Bubir. SIM Thomas Biedermann
is the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=51830 .

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

January 30, 2015

Latvia - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 40-board Friendly Match against a team from Latvia.
Our first board is being played by IM Kenneth Holroyd who is paired against
SIM Andris Roze. SIM Thomas Biedermann
is the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=50348 .

Congratulations to all of our big gainers and congratulations with a hearty welcome to Daniel and Humberto in this quarter's top 50!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

December 8, 2014

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 10

The Friendly Post Issue 10 is now available. You can access it using the link
in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

November 8, 2014

Slovakia - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 54-board Friendly Match against a team from Slovakia.
Our first board is being played by GM Jon Ostriker who is paired against
GM Peter Marczell. Alexander Relyea
is the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=48919 .

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

October 31, 2014

Report from the 2014 ICCF Congress

Dennis Doren represented ICCF-US at Congress in Sydney, and his report of highlights can be
accessed from the link below. I want to first thank Dennis for taking on the National Delegate
role, and all the work he did at Congress. ICCF-US was well represented with Dennis, Michael
Millstone as ICCF General Secretary, and Jason Bokar as NAPZ Director. The full Congress
minutes will be posted on the server when written and approved. Please make special note of
the following:

Franklin Campbell was awarded the Bertl von Massow Gold medal for 15 years of
service. His contributions include a major role in getting the ICCF server started, websites
with ICCF links, TC for Olympiad teams, and TD for many events. Congratulations, Franklin!

Dennis Doren was elected Chair of the Arbiters Committee. Tony Kain was
appointed to the position of Deputy to Ratings Commissioner Gerhard Binder. Congratulations
to both, and thank you for all the work ahead of you!

One significant rule change is that the server will immediately score a result when a flag falls.
Appeal procedures remain the same.

Please follow
this link to see titles awarded and tournament awards for ICCF-US players.

Congratulations to all of our big gainers and congratulations with a hearty welcome to the 4 debuting in this quarter's top 50!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

September 3, 2014

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 9

The Friendly Post Issue 9 is now available. You can access it using the link
in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

August 5, 2014

Switzerland - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 57-board Friendly Match against a team from Switzerland.
Our first board is being played by SIM Carl Siefring who is paired against
SIM Andreas Brugger who just qualified to play in a World Championship final. SIM Carl Siefring
is also the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=45100 .

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

July 11, 2014

ICCF-US USA National Federation Report 2014

The 2014 USA National Federation report has been released. Please
click here
to see the highlights of our year as reported to the ICCF. A teaser:
the report begins
"2014 has been a great year for ICCF-US."

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US National Federation Rep

July 11, 2014

ICCF-US Team Wins Olympiad 20 Preliminaries - Section 03

By winning Olympiad 20 Prelim, Section 3 the ICCF-US team of Jon Ostriker,
Carl Siefring, Ken Reinhart, Dan Perry, Tom Biedermann,
and Tony Kain qualified an ICCF-US team for the Olympiad 20 Finals. The team
is +13 with no individual losses and one game remaining, expecting to keep the no loss
record in tact. Jon Ostriker has one game remaining, and will finish first on Bd. 1. Dan Perry
scored a jaw-dropping +5 in an eight game event on Bd. 4, a GM norm. Tony Kain’s +3
shared first on Bd. 6. All individuals will finish at least third in the nine player
sections. This was tough competition, four teams in the section with a higher average rating.
Congratulations to all team members!

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Olympiad 20 Preliminaries Team Captain

June 30, 2014

Austria - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 60-board Friendly Match against a team from Austria.
Our first board is being played by GM Daniel Fleetwood who is paired against
GM Christian Muck. IM Kenneth Holroyd is the USA Team Captain. You can find this
match at the following URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=44702 .

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

There are no new entries into this quarter's top 50.
Biggest ratings gainer this month is IM Ken Holroyd
with a 27 point increase to move from 16th to 12th in the top 50 list.
Congratulations Ken!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

June 8, 2014

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 8

The Friendly Post Issue 8 is now available. You can access it using the link
in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

May 21, 2014

Denmark - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 23-board Friendly Match against a team from Denmark.
This completes our playing matches against the ICCF-chess playing Nordic countries within
the past 5 years (including Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden; excluding the
Aland Islands, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland).
Our first board is being played by Larry Parsons who is paired against Claus Jensen.
SIM Kristo Miettinen is the USA Team Captain. You can find this match at the following
URL:
http://www.iccf-webchess.com/event?id=44320 .

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

May 11, 2014

Israel - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 28-board Friendly Match against a team from Israel.
The USA team has three GMs playing boards 1 through 3: GM Steven Ham (board 1),
GM Jason Bokar (board 2), and GM Jon Ostriker (board 3). This occurred
by taking advantage of the offer from the top player from the Israeli team to play multiple
boards to increase the overall number of boards in the match. That Israeli player, playing
boards 1-3, is GM Yoav Dothan. (That same offer was made by, and accepted for many of the
Israeli players on their team.) This situation may be another first for the USA in the
Friendly Matches - the first time all three of our top boards are being played by GMs!
Danny Horwitz is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

May 10, 2014

Palciauskas Invitational

It is with great pleasure that I announce the commencement of the 2014 USA Invitational,
played in honor of Victor (Vytas) Palciauskas. Victor was the 10th World Correspondence Chess
Champion and one of the strongest GMs to fly the US flag. There are three sections in the VVP
invitational.

VVP-B is a Cat. 8 event with an average rating of 2433 and contains 5 SIMs and 7 IMs. US
players include IM Wesley Green, IM Wolff Morrow, IM William Fuller,
IM John Ballow, and Robert Fass.

VVP-C is a Cat. 5 event with an average rating of 2363 and has 1 IM. US players include Dennis
Doren, Daniel Woodard, David Sogin, Glen Shields, and Larry Dulany.

To give some perspective, we had anticipated a Cat. 11 for VVP-A, Cat. 7 for VVP-B, and Cat.
3 for VVP-C. However, because of the immense interest from other countries and the great work
by our ICCF-US team, we were able to organize sections of considerably higher category.

I would like to thank all of those who have helped me in organizing this prestigious event,
including: Glen Shields, Corky Schakel, Carl Siefring, Tom Biedermann, and Dennis Doren
were all instrumental in making this organization run smoothly.

Amici Sumus,

Tony Kain, VVP TO

April 22, 2014

US Correspondence Chess Championship 21 Semifinals

The US Correspondence Chess Championship 21 Semifinals are open to all players with a USA flag
2000+ rated by ICCF, CCLA, or USCF/FIDE (Correspondence or over the board).

There will be 7 player sections, winners qualify for the Finals. Two way ties both advance,
three way if it does not mean too many Finalists. More than three will require a tiebreak: most
wins, S-B, or Forecast rating.

Forecast or fixed ratings close to 2000 may be used to fill out sections.

Start date is July 4. Entries may be submitted any time before June 15. See iccfus.com, Store.

Time control will be a new server option: 150 days for first ten moves, 15/10 after that. This
will allow more time in the early part of the games, about the same amount of time through 50 moves
as 40/10, and will allow games to conclude faster after that.

Seeding will be by rating, across all sections and within sections.

Finals will be 13-17 players, with invitations to highest rated available to fill the section
as needed. As always CCLA and USCF will be invited to nominate a player, and a past Champ may
be invited. Co-champs will be declared if there is a two way tie in the Finals. If more than
two there will be a double round robin playoff.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US National Federation Rep

April 4, 2014

GM Daniel M. Fleetwood Posts Historic Result

Let me preface this report by saying that I am a statistics junkie. Growing up, I collected baseball cards and
could recite all of the key performance figures on my favorite players. I was researching the strongest tournaments played
in ICCF, intrigued by the observation that the two strongest ICCF World Championship finals were Category 15 and were
started in 2003 and 2004.
My internet search discovered that someone had already done the research and compiled a
nifty webpage with links to all ICCF tourneys of Category 15 and above to date --
Celebrating 60 years of the ICCF - Top ICCF Tournaments by Mariusz Wojnar (POL).
This brought to light a recent outstanding accomplishment by one of our members.

GM Dan Fleetwood - file photo

The 14th highest rated ICCF tournament ever, according to this list, (average rating 2606) is the 2011
10 Jahre Schachschule Pirs in
Deutschland Gruppe A , a memorial tournament conducted by Deutscher Fernschachbund (BdF - ICCF Germany). Two of America's
strongest GMs obtained invitations and competed for honors in this daunting field, Daniel M. Fleetwood and Stephen E. Ham.
Daniel, who entered the tourney with the second lowest rating in the field, won three games in 2013, sewing up the tournament victory
with 6.5 of 10 to finish a full point ahead of his nearest rival! His performance rating of 2718 may be the strongest ever achieved
by an ICCF-US member. Congratulations to Daniel on completing a signal achievement. With one game left, Stephen could still tie for second.

Dan Perry, ICCF-US Webmaster

March 25, 2014

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Welcome IM Keith A.Rodriguez back
to the Top 50 List, returning in the #49 slot.
Biggest ratings gainers this month are SIM Dr. Carl L. Siefring and Daniel S. Woodard
with 19 point rating increases from the previous list.
Congratulations to all!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

March 20, 2014

Germany - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 162-board Friendly Match against a team from Germany.
This is the largest Friendly Match in the history of the ICCF-US! Our previous record was
157 boards in a 1995 Friendly Match, also against Germany. (See the newsletter "The Friendly
Post" issue 7, for more details.) This match is literally twice the size of our largest match
of more recent time of 81 boards in the Russia-USA match that began a year ago. In this new match,
GM Daniel Fleetwood is playing Board 1 for the USA versus GM Wolfgang Brodda.
Our ICCF-US Treasurer SIM Thomas Biedermann is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 20, 2014

India - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 21-board Friendly Match against a team from India.
We continue making history in our Friendly Matches. This time, it is because of the
matchup on Board 1. The USA's highest rated active ICCF player GM Alik Zilberberg,
currently tied for 37th highest in the world among ICCF players,
is playing Board 1 for the USA versus FIDE GM Sasikiran Krishnan, tied for the 73rd highest
rated player in the world on the current FIDE list. This is the first time since a match 6
years ago (against England started April 2008) that both players on Board 1 in an ICCF-US
Friendly Match are rated over 2600, that earlier match also involving GM Zilberberg!
This time, the opposing player is from the FIDE list, and is a newcomer to ICCF play.
Our ICCF-US National Representative IM Corky Schakel is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 20, 2014

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 7

The Friendly Post Issue 7 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

February 4, 2014

New ICCF-US Board Member

Please welcome Carl Siefring to the ICCF-US Board. Carl has been
a leading player for ICCF-US for many years, and has represented ICCF-US
on international teams and in other major events. He will contribute to
the planning and continued growth of ICCF-US invitationals, as well as help
develop plans for future USCCCs (where he is a recently crowned co-champ).
Thanks for volunteering, Carl!

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US National Federation Rep

January 25, 2014

USCCC Champions List Added to Site

As we head toward the Finals of the 20th US Correspondence Chess Championship we add
a new page to the site to commemorate the players who have risen to the top of
ICCF-US play by winning the US Correspondence Chess Championship, our USCCC Champions and Co-champions!
Select the "List of USCCC Winners" menu item from the menu on the left hand side to display the page. Thanks
to Dennis Doren who compiled the list for inclusion on our
ICCF-US wiki page .

Dan Perry, ICCF-US Webmaster

January 16, 2014

Announcing Three New ICCF Titles Earned

The ICCF-US Office is pleased to announce that three members of our Federation have recently earned the
following Correspondence Chess Titles:

Select the links above for a Press Release for each new titlist with active links to the associated
norm-earning tournament crosstables on the ICCF website where appropriate. In addition, each contains a link to
a game on this site which has been selected and annotated by each player. You may also select those games
from the menu on the left (listed under "Featured Games" Jan 2014-New Titleholder).

Hearty congratulations to Liam, Bryce and Bobby for their well-deserved recognition!

Robert Rizzo, ICCF-US Titles Officer

January 6, 2014

And Since the New Year Is Time For New Starts ...

ICCF-US has reduced prices on ICCF tournament entries for the New Year (in reflection of changed prices from
ICCF and a more positive exchange rate versus the Euro)! As always select the "ICCF-US Store" hyperlink
at the top of this column or the corresponding menu item in the left column to see the new prices and / or submit your entry.
Of course, you may still and are encouraged to enter many of these tournaments through the direct entry feature of the
ICCF site, as the US price will normally be slightly higher than direct entry.

So make your New Year's resolution now to stock up on games at these reduced prices!

Thanks to ICCF-US Treasurer Thomas Biedermann for putting together the new price structure.

Dan Perry, ICCF-US Webmaster

January 5, 2014

ICCF-US has begun play in a 52-board Friendly Match against a team from Canada,
this match involving two sections: one consisting of 43 boards being played through the
ICCF server and the other involving 9 boards being played through postal transmission.
This is the first postal transmission Friendly Match play for the ICCF-US since a postal
match was played starting in April 2010 against France - shy of 4 years ago!
Chris O'Connell is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Paul Morley in the server
section. Andrew Katz is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Richard Labonte in the postal section.
SIM Tom Biedermann is the USA Team Captain for the server section. Stanley Jarosz
is the USA Team Captain for the postal section.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

January 1, 2014

Happy New Year!

ICCF-US and your webmaster wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year. Perhaps this is your year
to see how far you can go in the World Championship cycle (the preliminaries are open now if you qualify)
or maybe you want to meet interesting closely matched opponents
in friendly matches with other countries. This may be your year to make some progress on an International
Master, Senior International Master or even Grandmaster title. Whatever your aims for this year
ICCF offers you top international games to help you pursue your chess journey.

Wishing you good chess in 2014,

Dan Perry, ICCF-US Webmaster

December 20, 2013

Iceland - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 31-board Friendly Match against a team from Iceland.
This is another in our series of historic Friendly Matches. This time, it is because
this match involves a record number of boards for Iceland!
IM Kenneth Holroyd is playing Board 1 for the USA versus IM Árni H. Kristjánsson.
Very active Friendly Match player Edwin Meiners is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

December 17, 2013

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Welcome Gary Walters, Kristo S. Miettinen, David Sogin and Daniel S. Woodard
to the Top 50 List, debuting in the #42, #46, #48 and #49 slots
respectively.
Biggest ratings gainer this month is Ken Holroyd with a 26 point rating increase from the previous list. Also notable
are Bobby Johnson and Donald J.Harvey who each gained 19 points. Congratulations to all!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

December 10, 2013

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 6

The Friendly Post Issue 6 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page. If you have not
seen these newsletters previously, please review the newsletter to learn of the ICCF-US Friendly
Matches and how you can participate in them. If you are already familiar with The Friendly Post,
please see this issue to learn of the latest options you have concerning upcoming Friendly Matches
and information about the status of the many (16!) current Friendly Matches.

Please be aware of the survey on pages 1-3 concerning your potential interests in the Friendly
Matches for 2014. If you have not already sent a reply to this survey, please do so right away to
secure a place in matches now being organized. If you have already responded to the survey, please do
not send a repeat reply unless you wish to make changes from your original response.

In any case, I hope you enjoy this latest issue!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

December 3, 2013

Wolff Morrow and Carl Siefring Win 19th USCCC!

Wolff Morrow and Carl Siefring have finished the 19th USCCC as Co-champs with a
score of 11 points in sixteen games. Wolff recently received his IM title, and has sights set on SIM.
Carl has that SIM title, and is on the path to the GM title. Congratulations to both! We hope to add
photos and annotated games soon.

Ken Holroyd and Liam Fuller were close behind with 10½ points, in what must be the most
competitive USCCC ever. The complete cross table is at
19th USCCC Crosstable .

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US National Federation Rep

December 2, 2013

ICCF Rule Changes Effective January 1, 2014

Minutes from the 2013 ICCF Congress in Krakow, Poland are posted on the
ICCF webserver
(ICCF Congresses button on the left). Several rules changes were adopted effective 1.1.14,
and a brief summary is below.

Tablebase mate claims may now be made to the TD for a forced mate with six or less pieces
on the board. The 50 move rule is suspended in these cases. For those not familiar with tablebases,
they have all positions solved for six or less pieces, and the following link is free to the public:
Nalimov Tablebases

A few words were added to the ICCF Code of Conduct to address extremely slow play to delay a
result for reasons that do not relate to the position on the board. This is sometimes called
Dead Man’s Defense.

(d) Extremely slow play in a clearly lost position is not proper behaviour in CC play,
and is subject to a warning from the TD, and will result in disciplinary action if it continues
or is repeated in other games.

Exceeding the time limit (ETL) is now defined to be a loss, not a Default loss. TDs will check
with the player that he has not gone silent (if no response to the TD all remaining games will
be scored as Default). Half of games lost by ETL will result in Defaulting all remaining games.
If two players are silent at the same time, a double Default may be scored.

Special Leave is eliminated, replaced by 45 days regular leave per year instead of 30 days.

Conditional moves (“if moves”) are allowed for events where it is in the tournament announcement.
This includes Champions League and Friendly Matches, and formalizes existing practice and server
capabilities. Most ICCF events do not allow conditional moves.

Note that in a procedural change adopted a year ago all rules change proposals must
be submitted to the appropriate Rules Committee prior to Congress. The above changes
followed that procedure.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US National Federation Rep

November 28, 2013

Cuba - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 42-board Friendly Match against a team from Cuba.
Chris O'Connell is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Jose Manuel Gonzalez Cubertier.
SIM Thomas Biedermann is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

November 27, 2013

Wales - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 21-board Friendly Match against a team from Wales.
IM Keith Rodriguez is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Anthony Balshaw.
Ed Barr is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

October 16, 2013

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 5

The Friendly Post Issue 5 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

October 12, 2013

Japan - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 9-board Friendly Match against a team from Japan.
This may be the first time our two countries have played such a match.
William Merrell is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Atsushi Saitou.
SIM Tom Biedermann is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

October 3, 2013

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Welcome Larry Parsons and Glen Shields to the Top 50 List, debuting in the #48 and #49 slots
respectively, and to returning Top 50 listers Corky Schakel (#42) and Matthew Clowes (#46).
Corky was the biggest gainer with a 40 point rating increase from the previous list. Also notable is
the rise of Wolff Morrow who gained 26 points which added to his previous increase of 31 points
totals a meteoric rise of 57 points over the past two listings. Congratulations to all!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

September 12, 2013

Peru - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 26-board Friendly Match against a team from Peru.
We have not played this country at least in many years.
SIM Tom Biedermann is playing Board 1 for the USA versus SIM Carlos Sosa Patino.
Very frequent Friendly Match participant Jon Leisner is the USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

August 6, 2013 (Belka Press Release Updated Sep 11, 2013)

Five ICCF-US Members Earn Titles

The ICCF-US Office would like to extend congratulations to five members of our Federation who have earned the
following Correspondence Chess Titles:

The links above navigate to a separate Release for each new titlist with active links to the associated
norm-earning tournament crosstables on the ICCF website. In addition, each contains a link to a game
which has been selected and annotated by that player. The games are also available to play through from the
"Featured Games" menu on the left of this web page. Enjoy the releases and the photos below recognizing the
achievements of our new titlists.

SIM Dr. Carl Siefring

IM Wesley Green

IM Kenneth Holroyd

IM Wolff Morrow

No Photo Available for Wieland Belka

Robert Rizzo ICCF-US Titles Officer

September 5, 2013

Venezuela - USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 20-board Friendly Match against a team from Venezuela.
This may an historic first, as this may be the first time we will play this country.
Patrick Ryan is playing Board 1 for the USA versus César Jesus Reyes Maldonado.
Mark Robledo Sr. is the USA Team Captain.

August 21, 2013

Romania-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 35-board Friendly Match against a team from Romania.
This is a rematch from five years ago when we won the match 36-30.
SIM Dr. Carl Siefring is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Gheorghe Pepene.
SIM Dr. Carl Siefring is also our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

July 23, 2013

Two South Carolina ICCF Players

Dr. Jason Bokar and Tony Kain

Pictured above are Jason Bokar and Tony Kain,
getting together for some barbecue
and chess talk in their home state of South Carolina. Dr. Bokar is a GM, and NAPZ
Director for ICCF. Tony Kain is the newest member of the ICCF-US Board, with technical
advisor responsibilities. CC players do not get together all that often, and we look
forward to posting photos like this in the future.

Corky Schakel, National Federation Rep

July 15, 2013

ICCF-US Team Clinches Second in PanAM Team 10

The ICCF-US team in PanAm Team 10 just clinched second place, and will
receive the silver medals and certificates at the 2014 Congress in Sydney, Australia.
The team was Carl Siefring, Tom Biedermann, John Ballow, and Tony Kain. The team
record was wins over nine opponents and equal with three, a full three points ahead of
first place Peru, but Peru had the winning score in total games won, 32/48 with one game
remaining. Our score of 30/48 will be ahead of the remaining contenders, still battling
it out for third. Congratulations to the Peru team, and to our team, well done by both!

Corky Schakel, National Federation Rep

July 11, 2013

New ICCF-US Board Members

It is an honor to welcome Glen Shields and Tony Kain to the ICCF-US Board. Glen
has been a leader for CCLA for many years, and has recently taken on the TO duties for all NAPZ events,
along with volunteering to TO for our 2014 Invitational. He will continue his work with CCLA, a
valuable contact for ICCF-US to allow experienced CC players to become aware of ICCF events. Tony
Kain will be our technical advisor, with great knowledge of the latest software developments. Tony
recently was placed on the ICCF list of TDs, on the path to the International Arbiter title. Many thanks
to Glen and Tony from all ICCF-US members, and to all the other Board members, some of their many
contributions outlined below.

Dennis Doren – Organizer for Friendly Matches, Friendly Post author, and TO for the Berliner Invitational.

Bob Rizzo – Title applications, announcements, and other communications.

Franklin Campbell and Kristo Miettinen – Advisors, TO assignments, and just all around great resources.

Corky Schakel, National Federation Rep

June 17, 2013

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 4

The Friendly Post Issue 4 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

June 17, 2013

Price Rise in ICCF Tournament Entries Through ICCF-US

ICCF-US regrets to inform you that effective today, due to the increased exchange rate of the Euro in US dollars,
we must raise the prices on the ICCF tournament entries through ICCF-US. The new prices have been posted under
the "ICCFUS Store" tab accessed
from the menu in the upper left column of this page. Prices through direct entry (through ICCF not ICCF-US)
are unaffected as they
continue to be posted in Euros with the exchange rate handled through the PayPal purchase.

June 11, 2013

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Welcome Peter Cullen to the Top 50 List, debuting in the #50 slot. The biggest move this quarter
is Wolff Morrow who jumped from 46th to 36th place on the strength of a 31-point rating increase.
Congratulations to Peter and Wolff!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

May 20, 2013

2013 ICCF-US National Federation Report Submitted

Corky Schakel , USA National Federation Representative, has submitted the
2013 USA National Federation Report
with ICCF for the 2013 ICCF Congress in Krakow, Poland.
This has been an active year for the US in ICCF play and governance with, among other things, 8 new
Freindly Matches with other countries / federations. Please click on the hyperlink above to see what
else your federation is doing!

Dan Perry, ICCF-US Wemaster

April 7, 2013

Czech Republic-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 55-board Friendly Match against a team from the Czech Republic.
The Czech Team Captain has informed us that this is the largest Friendly Match their country has ever played.
GM Stephen Ham is playing Board 1 for the USA versus GM Jan Židu.
SIM Thomas Biedermann is our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

April 7, 2013

Portugal-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has also begun play in a 27-board Friendly Match against a team from Portugal.
IM Corky Schakel is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Paulo Leal.
Patrick Ryan is our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 28, 2013

New Events for NAPZ

North America Pacific Zone Promotional events (Open, Higher, Master Class) are now available
under New Events on the ICCF webserver page. These are equivalent to the World Individual Promotional
events, but are limited to players in NAPZ countries (see Nations & Zones on the webserver page)
and those countries in the geographical area that are not ICCF member federations. Master Class
will be seven player sections, instead of eleven, the same as Open and Higher, same entry fee.
The time control will be different: 40 days for 10 moves for the NAPZ events, rather than 50/10.
Thanks to Glen Shields for taking on the role of Tournament Organizer! He will receive the
entries from Direct Entry and National Federation entries, and will set the sections up on the server.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US NF Rep.

March 28, 2013

Netherlands-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 64-board Friendly Match against a team from the Netherlands.
We last played the Netherlands in a Friendly Match in 1985 (info thanks to Alex Dunne!).
SIM Thomas Biedermann is playing Board 1 for the USA versus the over-the-board IM Twan Burg.
Harry Ingersol is our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 24, 2013

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Welcome IM Cesar Musitani to the Top 50 List. The biggest move this quarter
is Peter Dessaules who jumped from 37th to 23rd place on the strength of a 30-point rating increase.
Congratulations to Cesar and Peter!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

March 12, 2013

Cape Verde-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 15-board Friendly Match against a team from Cape Verde.
This is another historic Friendly Match for us as we have not played Cape Verde previously.
Kyle Biedermann is playing Board 1 for the USA versus Antunio Barbosa. Joseph Korman is our
USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 12, 2013

Norway-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 21-board Friendly Match against a team from Norway.
We last played Norway in a Friendly Match almost 30 years ago. GM Jason Bokar
is playing Board 1 for the USA versus GM Arild Haugen. SIM Thomas Biedermann
is our USA Team Captain

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

March 5, 2013

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 3

The Friendly Post Issue 3 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

February 28, 2013

Panama-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 12-board Friendly Match against a team from Panama.
This is another historic Friendly Match for us as we have the honor to play Panama
in its first Friendly Match - Panama just recently became an ICCF Member Federation.
IM Cesar Musitani is playing Board 1 versus Hermann V. Rösch M. SIM Thomas Biedermann
is our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

January 10, 2013

Russia-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in an 81-board Friendly Match against a team from Russia. This is
the historic first time we are playing Russia in a Friendly Match, with a previous match
against the USSR having occurred long ago, during the early to mid-1980s. It is also the
largest Friendly Match the USA has had in recent time, going much beyond the recent history
record holder 64-board match versus the Ukraine in 2010. IM Wieland Belka is playing Board 1
versus SIM Vil Usbekovich Yamaliev. David White is our USA Team Captain.

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

December 12, 2012

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated - Correction 20 Dec

Using the 2013/1 ICCF ELO (player rating) lists [effective 1 January 13], Bob Rizzo
ICCF-US Titles Officer has compiled the latest ICCF-US Top 50 Rated Active Players list.
Dropping from the list are Palciauskas and Divanbaigyand from inactivity, and
Moore, Musitani, Cullen & Meiners all have fallen below the cutoff.

Returning to the list are Knudsen and Savage who became active by entering Australia/New Zealand-USA,
and Holroyd, Morrow, Harvey & Fuller all via ratings jumps. Holroyd gained 57 points, followed by Morrow’s
45 point increase and Fuller’s 41 uptick. Belka’s 24 point increase also included the addition of the
IM title. Green also earned the IM title during this past rating period. Congratulations to
all of our new top 50s and new IMs!

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

Our sincere apology to GM Vytas Victor Palciauskas for reporting that dropping off the top 50
was due to his passing.

December 3, 2012

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Newsletter - Issue 2

The Friendly Post Issue 2 is now available. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column
on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

October 23, 2012

Olympiad 20 Prelim Team Announced

The ICCF-US Olympiad 20 Prelim lineup is listed below, a strong team that will be working to
maintain the ICCF-US record of qualifying for every Olympiad Final back through Olympiad 13.
Good luck and go get ‘em!

GM Jon Ostriker

IM Carl Siefring

SIM Ken Reinhart

SIM Dan Perry

SIM Tom Biedermann

Tony Kain

TC: Corky Schakel

Corky Schakel, USA National Federation Rep.

October 19, 2012

OLY 18 Finals Team Announced

The ICCF-US Olympiad 18 Final lineup is a joy to announce, with four GMs, and two SIMs who earned
their way to the Final by winning their Prelim sections. This is a strong team for ICCF’s most prestigious
team event! Franklin Campbell has agreed to act as Team Captain. Thanks to all for
representing ICCF-US. Good luck and go get ‘em!

GM Steve Ham

GM Jason Bokar

GM Dan Fleetwood

GM Ed Duliba

SIM Keith Holzmueller

SIM Michael Proof

Corky Schakel, USA National Federation Rep.

October 10, 2012

Australia/New Zealand-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 55 board Friendly Match with a combined team from Australia and New Zealand.
GM Daniel Fleetwood is playing board 1 versus GM Mark Noble. Ed Barr is the Team Captain,
and thanks, also significantly assisted in organizing this event!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

September 19, 2012

USA Olympiad 18 Team takes second place ahead of Germany

Congratulations to our board 3 Keith Holzmueller on winning his final game vs.
Dr. Arpad Serner of Germany to clinch 2nd place for USA in our section. We had already
qualified to the final since Germany had previously qualified (so 3rd place was sufficient).
However, it is great to actually take 2nd place ahead of Germany and just one point behind
1st place Sweden. This closes out this event with all games on all boards completed.

In addition to overtaking Germany with this win, Keith also won the board with an undefeated
score of 3 wins, 3 draws to edge Lennart Rydholm of Sweden on tie-break.

Overall, the USA team performed very well scoring 10 wins vs. only 2 losses (36 draws).
On two boards the USA player finished 1st (Bd3: IM Keith Holzmueller, Bd4: SIM Michael Proof)
and on two boards just 1/2 point out of first (Bd1: GM Daniel Fleetwood, Bd 6: SIM Tim Murray).
This was an excellent performance by all six team members!

Best regards,

Franklin Campbell, Team Captain

September 19, 2012

ICCF-US Friendly Matches Now Has a Newsletter

The ICCF-US now has a periodic newsletter dedicated to everything from the USA Friendly
Matches (our international team competitions with no team prizes). The newsletter is entitled
The Friendly Post. You can access it using the link in the lefthand column on this web page.
The newsletter describes our historical performance, upcoming Friendly Matches, simple instructions
about how to participate in Friendly Matches, highlighted games from Friendly Matches, and more.
Check it out!

Dennis Doren, ICCF-US Friendly Match Organizer

September 17, 2012

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Using the 2012/4 ICCF ELO (player rating) lists [effective 1 October 12], Bob Rizzo
ICCF-US Titles Officer has compiled the latest ICCF-US Top 50 Rated Active Players list.
We have no new players in the Top 50 this month (Robert Merton Jacobs has returned to the list
after a period of inactivity).

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

September 11, 2012

HERBERT W. GUSTAFSON OPEN TOURNAMENT

Herbert W. Gustafson, who died in 2008, left a generous bequest to CCLA to be used for
correspondence chess. CCLA will hold the Herbert W. Gustafson Open Tournament starting
October 15, 2012 in honor of Mr. Gustafson. This is a CCLA server event open to any
resident of the United States or Canada. No CCLA Membership Requirement. No Entry Fee.

Sections will be formed in order of rating, with each section having four players
playing two games against each opponent. (There may be a few five-player sections if
needed to accommodate all the entrants.) There will be prizes, in the form of $19 credits
to each section winner (split in case of a tie) that may be used for a CCLA membership or,
for CCLA members, entry fees into other CCLA events. Entries close on October 15, 2012.
Only one entry per person accepted. As with other CCLA events, the use of chess-playing
computer engines is not allowed.

If you are interested, please email herbhickman@comcast.net
with name, rating (please specify organization), email address, and ICCF ID# if you have one.

August 19, 2012

Wolff Morrow joins ICCF-US Board as USCCC Organizer

Wolff Morrow has volunteered to accept the new position of USCCC Organizer,
and joins the ICCF-US Board. Wolff has been an active player for several years, and
is currently playing in the USCCC 19 Final. He will be organizing the USCCC 20 Semis,
and future US Correspondence Championship events.

Thanks so much to Wolff for taking on this role!

Corky Schakel, USA NF Rep.

August 13, 2012

Dennis Doren to the ICCF-US Board as Friendly Match Coordinator

Dennis Doren has volunteered to take over responsibilities for Friendly Matches,
recruiting and selecting Team Captains and organizers for our team. We have had lots of matches
in the last five years, but only one where we issued the challenge. That may change! Right now
he is working with Ed Barr who as agreed to TC and organize the team for a challenge from Australia.

Dennis is a long term ICCF-US player, a friend, and I am most grateful to him for volunteering for this job.

Corky Schakel, USA NF Rep.

UPDATE August 4, 2012

GM Tansel Turgut 3rd in WCCC 24, GM Jason Bokar 5th

GM Tansel Turgut finished third in WCCC 24 with a score of +5-0=11,
for 10½/16, a point out of first and losing the 2/3 tiebreak. Tansel
is a physician who has lived in Illinois for twenty years, and plays
under the Turkish flag, his native country. GM Jason Bokar finished
fifth with a score of +2-0=14, for 9/16. Congratulations, Tansel and Jason,
for fine performances in a World Championship Final!

Šemrl, Marjan (SLO).....................................11½

Wunderlich, Dr. Hans-Dieter (GER)...............10½

Turgut, Tansel (TUR).....................................10½

Buse, Detlef (GER)..........................................9½

Bokar, Jason (USA)........................................9

August 3, 2012

SIM Tom Biedermann, ICCF-US Treasurer, Additional Board Positions

SIM Tom Biedermann has agreed to accept the new position of ICCF-US Treasurer,
and will also be taking on the responsibility for handling entries. Tom joins the ICCF-US Board.
Recognition for those who have been supporting ICCF-US is long overdue. SIM Dan Perry is webmaster,
continuing the key support role he has maintained for the last five years. IM Bob Rizzo keeps track
of norms, submits Title applications, and writes and distributes communications outside of ICCF-US.
SIM Kristo Miettinen has acted as Tournament Organizer and TD for many events. IA Franklin
Campbell played a key role in developing the ICCF server, and has been the all-everything support
person for all things server related, as well as TO and TD for USCCCs. GM Jason Bokar is the NAPZ Director,
and provides much support to ICCF-US, as does SIM Michael Millstone as General Secretary of ICCF.
In addition to these now official positions there have been many active Team Captains, Tournament Organizers,
and TDs greatly deserving thanks from all in ICCF-US.

There are other support opportunities for participation in ICCF-US. We need a person to handle applications
through the ICCF New Player function. There is also a need for a person to lead Friendly Match efforts,
including selecting Team Captains and submitting and receiving other NF challenges. A USCCC coordinator
would be a good position for an experienced player willing to take on a busy couple of months every two years.
These positions offer the opportunity to work with the many ICCF officials who make ICCF work so well.

Finally, I could not have gotten through the first year as ICCF-US Secretary without the support
and guidance of Ruth Ann Fay, who did all of the above for more than ten years. I am honored
to continue as USA National Federation Rep.

Amici Sumus! Corky Schakel

July 28, 2012

England-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a 34 board Friendly Match with England.
SIM Ciaran O’Hare is playing board 1 versus SIM Alan J.C. Rawlings.
Dennis Doren is the Team Captain, and thanks, Dennis, for organizing this event!

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US NF Rep

July 12, 2012

5th ICCF Champions League is now open for new teams

Below is the announcement for the new season of Champions League.
Anyone who is not a member of a four player team and is interested in playing,
please contact SIM Tom Biedermann at bied26@gmail.com

Dear ICCF Delegates, Officials, and Friends,

On behalf of the NonTitle Tournament Commissioner, Andrew Dearney (ENG),
I am pleased to announce that registration for the 5th ICCF Champions
League is now open.

Applications will be accepted through National Federations and Direct Entry this season.

Team applications accepted through National Federations will be EUR 40,00;
Direct Entry fees will be displayed through PayPal on checkout.

Please see attached for the Tournament Announcement and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ),

June 12, 2012

ICCF-US Announces 20th US Correspondence Chess Championship

The 20th US Correspondence Chess Championship is scheduled to start October 1, 2012.
It is open to all US citizens or residents with an established rating of 2000 or higher.
This includes OTB ratings as well as USCF, CCLA, or ICCF ratings. Play in this Semifinal
will be in seven player sections, play by ICCF server, with section winners qualifying for the Final.
Entry fee is $20, no additional fee for the Final. The USCCC Champion will qualify for a World
Correspondence Chess Championship Prelim or Semi.

Players can send entries or questions to
ICCF-US Secretary Corky Schakel,
schakels@comcast.net .
Entries should be submitted by September 1, 2012.

June 12, 2012

ICCF-US Top 50 Rating List Updated

Using the 2012/3 ICCF ELO (player rating) lists [effective 1 July 12], Bob Rizzo
ICCF-US Titles Officer has compiled the latest ICCF-US Top 50 Rated Active Players list.
We have no new players in the Top 50 this month.

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

May 18, 2012

Sweden-USA Friendly Match Started

ICCF-US has begun play in a Friendly Match with Sweden. GM Dr. Edward Duliba
is playing board 1 versus GM Lennart Rydholm, a great Board 1 matchup. SIM Tom Biedermann
is the Team Captain, and thanks go to him for all the work organizing this event.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Secretary

May 7, 2012

ICCFUS Olympiad 18 Team Qualifies for the Finals!

The ICCF-US Olympiad 18 team has officially qualified for the OLY18 Final. The team of
GM Dan Fleetwood, SIMs Jerry Weisskohl, Keith Holzmueller, Michael Proof, IM Bill Boucher,
and SIM Tim Murray scored +9-2=36 with one game remaining. To have only two losses for
the whole team is an amazing result. Michael Proof won his section with +3-0=5, a great result!

Thanks to all the players, and to TC Franklin Campbell. With only two teams of nine qualifying
in each Prelim section, ICCF-US maintains a record of qualifying for all Olympiad Finals, 13 to 18.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Secretary

April 23, 2012

GM Duliba Bd. 1 for Sweden-USA Friendly Match

SIM Tom Biedermann is the Team Captain, and did all the work recruiting the team and organizing
the match - many thanks, Tom! And a sincere thank you also goes to IA Leo Lahdenmäki for taking on
the TD responsibilities.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Secretary

April 23, 2012

Belka Wins Chessfriends Rochade Bd. 7

ICCF-US member Wieland Belka, as a member of the NAPZ team, has completed play in Chessfriends Rochade -
20 Years with a first place finish on Bd. 7, scoring an IM norm in the process. The Rochade chess club
is one of Germany's largest chess clubs, and has sponsored prestigious team games for the club's 15th
and 20th anniversaries. Ten member ICCF-US and NAPZ teams have competed in each of these events, and
Wieland's win is the only first place for an ICCF-US player.

To access the list choose "PLAYER RANKS" from the
upper left menu bar.

February 19, 2012

Sweden-USA Friendly Match Announcement

ICCF-US has accepted a challenge to a Friendly Match from Sweden,
play to start in May or June. SIM Tom Biedermann is the Team Captain,
and will work with his Swedish counterpart to arrange matchups. Target
date for roster is 15 April. We have enough applications from the Standing
Team to fill about half of the 50 boards, so we are opening applications
to others who are interested. Contact Tom at
bied26@gmail.com .
We also need 6-8 players willing to play by post.

Entry fee for a Friendly Match is $6 for two games. If you are
interested in future matches, please send an email to
schakels@comcast.net .

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Secretary

February 7, 2012

Walter Muir Memorial Invitational

Assignments were sent out by the ICCF server 31 January for the Walter Muir Memorial Invitational, jointly
sponsored by ICCF-US and the Canadian Correspondence Chess Association. Thanks to GM Zdenek Nývlt for
volunteering to serve as TD, and to Tournament Organizer Ralph Marconi.

Section A has a field of six SIMs and eight GMs, including GMs Jason Bokar and Dan Fleetwood representing
ICCF-US. Section B also has fifteen players, including three IMs and three SIMs. Steve Douglas and Tony
Kain are representing ICCF-US. Crosstables:
Section A and
Section B .

The prize fund totals $1800 for the first five places in section A, and $1500 in B. Co-champions will
be declared if a tie for first, and cash prizes will be split among all ties.

Listed below is a brief bio for Walter Muir, an ICCF-US cofounder.

Corky Schakel, ICCF-US Secretary

Walter Muir has deservedly earned the title of the Grand Old Man of American Correspondence Chess.
He led American players into the international arena. He was a nine time Canadian Correspondence Chess
Association Champion, twice British Overseas CC Champion, 16 time champion of the Illinois CCA, winner
of nine ICCF Master Tournaments, qualified seven times for ICCF World Championship second-round play,
and played on four Olympiad teams for the United States. Muir was awarded the title of International
Correspondence Chess Master in 1971. Walter was active as a chess administrator and OTB player, and was
a cofounder of ICCF-US.

See "ICCF-US News Archives" in menu for 2001-2010 news

The ICCF has been the organization for international correspondencechess since World War II. There
are approximately eighty member countriesorganized into four zones. The ICCF-US Secretary has administrative
duties forall United States players. ICCF-U.S. is in the North American/Pacific Zone(NAPZ), which also includes
Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealandand Singapore. The US Secretary works closely with the Zonal
Director. The ICCF aim is to promote International Correspondence Chess as a way to meet and establish
friendships with people throughout the world in peaceful competition.There is only one language on the
chess board.